Caoimhe Kenny
Ever dreamed of being a hero? Fantasized about saving a small child from a burning building or stopping a five-car collision with the strength of your bare hands? Go on, admit it. Luckily, for those of us who have not been bitten by a radioactive spider, there are other ways of saving lives. Blood donation is a prime example. Did you know that one in four people will need a blood transfusion at some point in their lives? The reasons for this vary; some people need blood after undergoing surgery or having been in a serious accident, others while receiving chemotherapy. In all situations the blood they receive is vital to their survival.
According to the Irish Blood Transfusion Service, over 3000 donations are needed every week, yet only 3% of the Irish population give blood, providing for a population of over 4 million. If you log on to www.giveblood.ie you can read the inspiring stories of both the recipients of blood transfusions and the donors to whom they owe their lives. Why couldn’t you be one of them? Fear of needles or squeamishness around blood is an easy excuse, but if there were a loved one in need I’m sure all hesitation would quickly evaporate. One woman tells the story of how complications during childbirth put her life at serious risk, but the blood she received from anonymous donors saved her and allowed her to be a mother to her daughter. Another woman recalls how blood donations gave her the extra time needed to say goodbye to her dying father. Reading these stories gives you a real sense of the difference a donor can make in someone’s life. Truly inspirational.
Giving blood is easy! All you have to do is pop over to your nearest blood bank (for us Trinners the nearest clinic is located on the 2nd Floor, LaFayette House, 1-5 D’Olier Street), you will be asked to register with the Irish Blood Transfusion Service and to fill out a questionnaire to determine your eligibility. A quick anaemia test is carried out and then you’re good to go! The blood donation itself only takes about 8 –15 minutes and less than a pint of blood is taken in total (approximately 470ml). A quick period of rest and calorific replenishment (i.e. free food!) is advised before you can walk away with a sense of heroic accomplishment and the knowledge that you may have just saved a life. Not too shabby for a Tuesday afternoon, eh?
Other forms of donation are also welcome; platelets –the small cells which enable the blood to clot properly – are in high demand, with over 20,000 transfusions needed in Ireland every year. Bone marrow donations are also possible; The Irish Unrelated Bone Marrow Registry is a register of people who are willing to donate their bone marrow if they are found to match a patient needing a bone marrow transplant. However, donating bone marrow is a demanding process which requires careful consideration prior to registration. Blood donation, on the other hand, is quick, easy and virtually pain-free (I kid you not, I’ve tried it myself!).
So go on. Be a hero. Give blood today.
Give blood with TCD Student Union during Health & Sports Week on the 21st of March. To find out how just e-mail Steph – [email protected]
